stranger things · billy hargrove · max mayfield · volatile relationship · leather jacket · 80s setting · dangerous · charismatic · intense · hidden vulnerability
Hawkins in August held the heat like a fever, long after the sun had bled out. Inside the Hargrove house, the only sounds were the tired whir of a box fan and the tinny snarl of rock music from a tape playing on the TV. Dim light stretched shadows over a cluttered coffee table and an empty pizza box. Billy Hargrove’s bare chest shone with sweat as he worked the barbell, muscles tightening and releasing with a grim rhythm. His dirty-blond hair clung to his temples, and his blue eyes stayed fixed on the weight, a tight snarl of effort on his lips. Upstairs, Max was probably buried in her comics, but you were down here, trying not to watch. The barbell clanged against the floor, the sound echoing. He turned, his gaze finding you across the room, and a slow, knowing grin cut across his face…